Lawn edging spade attachment



S R CHRISTIANSEN LAWN EDGING SPADE ATTACHMENT Filed April 1, 1946 Nam.

Patented Nov. 28, 1950 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

This invention relates to spade attachments and more particularly to such devices for application to an ordinary spade or bladed digging and cutting implement used in the cutting away and trimming of sod and earth along the edges of walks and other appurtenant similar places coincident with a lawn or other grass plot and the like.

An object of the invention is to improve generally upon devices of its kind and make more practical and convenient the use of the same.

A particular object is to produce an inexpensive device embodying a minimum number of parts, operable in an efficient manner, and readily and adjustably assemblable upon and removable from the spade or digging and cutting tool.

Other objects and advantages to be attained will hereinafter more fully appear in the following description.

A practical but non-limiting exemplification of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which,

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a com ventional spade with a simile form of the present invention applied thereto;

Figure 2 is a front elevational view of the parts shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 1 but having applied additionally thereto a manually operable provision for moving the attachment proper to an opened or dumping position;

Figure 4 is a sectional View, on an enlarged scale, taken on the line i=i of Figure l; and

Figure 5 is a cross section on the line 5-5 of Figure 4:.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, the numeral it designates, as a whole, a conventional spade, although the same may be a specially constructed, bladed digging and cutting implement. The article, as shown, comprises the usual elongated pole-type handle member ll having the reversely curved lower portion 12 to which is attached a substantially rectangular, plate-like, blade member [3. In the shown structure, the blade l3 extends in a slight angular relation to the handle member H, but, obviously, in some adaptations of the invention, the implement It may be of a known type in which the handle member I l is straight throughout the entire length thereof and the blade member I3 also extends straightwise longitudinally of the handle member. This being obvious, there is no detail showing of such modification in the drawing.

The particular blade member 13 illustrated in the drawing is provided with a flanged top edge portion Hi, the same to afford a substantial widened and flattened surface against which the foot of the user may be pressed in the use of the implement.

As far as the present invention is concerned, the implement it may be of an approved and desirable construction and arrangement other than that herein illustrated and above described in detail.

The attachment of the present invention will now be described in detail. As shown, it comprises a substantially U-shaped body yoke l5, the right angular leg members IE, H, of which are respectively pivotally attached, as at [8, Hi, to companion, substantially Z-shape attaching brackets 253, 2!, by a through-bolt 22 having a head 23 at one end and a removable retainer nut 24 at its opposite end.

The attaching brackets 29, ii are provided for securely fastening the attachment of the present invention in different selectably adjusted positions upward and downward, as the case may be, on the blade member it of the spade or similar implement H3. As shown, the parallel opposed and outwardly projected, meeting angular end portions of the brackets 28 and 2! are apertured in alinement to receive a securing screw element 25 by the tightening of which the two brackets 28 and 25 are clamped engagingly with the opposite vertical edges of the implement blade l3, as more clearly shown in Figure 4.

Welded or otherwise suitably secured to the inner face of the intermediate portion of the body yoke I5 is a downwardly extending arcuate blade member 26, the top edge portion 2? of which is flanged and projected outwardly in overlapping relation to the top edge of the body yoke [5 (see Figures 4 and 5).

As shown more clearly in Figures 4 and 5, a looped strap type handle 28 is secured to the outer face of the intermediate portion of the body yoke 45, the fastening of said handle 23 being effected by a pair of bolts, rivets or screws 29 which are inserted through alined apertures provided therefor in the adjacent portion of the blade element 25 as well as in the body yoke 15 and the end portions of the handle member 26 itself. This particular provision and arrangement affords a stable supporting attachment for the blade element 2% as well as the handle element 28 to the body yoke l5 by a simple, single yet efiicient securing means.

In use of the spade attachment as shown in Figures 1 and the attachment tends to gravitate about the axis of the hinge-bolt 22, so that the bottom edge of the arcuate blade element 28 comes to rest against the adjacent outer face portion of the implement blade it. Then as the handle ii of the implement is manipulated and the blade member is forced bottom edge into the sod or earth contiguous the edge of Walk or the like, the arcuate blade element of the attachment, due to its contact with the adjacent sod or ground, causes the body yoke l5 to swing upwardly about the axis of its hinge-bolt 22 as indicated by dotted lines in Figure 3.

When the implement blade is is dug to the desired depth in the sod or earth, the maximum of such depth is limited by the particular position at which the attachment body yoke 15 is set upwardly or downwardly on the implement blade !3. That is to say, the ends oi the portions it and ll of the body yoke 25 may strike the sod or ground and thus prevent further movement of the implement blade into the sod or ground. It is because of this happening that provision is made for attaching the attachment of the present invention vertically adjustable on the implement blade.

In further use of the device of the present invention, after the implement blade it has made the desired vertical cut into the sod or ground, close to the edge of the walk or the like, the user then presses his foot against the flanged top edge 21 of the pivotally mounted, arcuate, attachment blade 25, thereby forcing said arcuate blade 26 into the adjacent portion of the sod or earth and cutting out a segmental piece of the sod or earth, which latter is retained on the implement blade it until said arcuate attachment blade is lifted by the user grasping the handle element 233 or by means of a specially provided manually operable feature to be now described.

As indicated in Figure 3, the attachment of the present invention may be modified by pivotally attaching one end portion of a link or a flexible cord element to the said handle element 23 on the body yoke 55, and similarly at taching the opposite end of the link or cord element to the lower end of a pull rod 3i which, as shown, is mounted longitudinally slidable in parallel relation on the handle member i l of the implement by the provision of detachable supporting and guiding clips which are placed adjustably around adjacent portions of the handle member H.

The upper end of the pull rod 3i, as shown, is provided with a conventional handle 33 for convenience in manipulation of the rod. By pulling upwardly on said rod the attachment of the present invention is lifted from its closed to opened or dumping position.

From the foregoing, it is clearly apparent that a simple and inexpensive yet practical and highly efiicient characteristic attachment for spades and similar digging and cutting implements is produced and the same is easily applied to the implement and as readily removed therefrom.

Moreover, while the device of the present inven tion is designed more particularly for digging and cut-trimming of sod and earth along the edges of walks and the like, the same is adaptable for many other uses. 60, too, while the illustrated structure is a practical exemplification of the invention, modification and changes therein are contemplated within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. The invention, therefore, is not limited to the specific construction and arrangement shown.

What is claimed is:

1. In a sod and soil edge trimmer attachment for spade-like implements, a substantially U- shape body yoke pivotally attached at its opposite end portions respectively to each of a pair of bracket elements, said bracket-elements having meeting end portions connectible by a tightenable securing element, the outer end portions of said bracket elements being clampingly engaged with the opposite vertical edges of the blade elemit proper of the implement and at selectively dilierent Working positions up and down on said blade element proper edges, the intermediate portion of said body yoke being swingable up and down on the pivotal axis of the yoke body in front of the implement blade element proper, and an arcuate attachment blade element supportedly attached adjacent its upper edge to the intern1ediate portion of said body yoke, extending downwardly therefrom and curving workably towards the attachment blade element proper, said attachment blade element in its lower position, resting in contact with the adjacent outer face portion of implement blade element proper.

2. A sod and soil edge trimmer attachment as set forth in claim 1, wherein the bracket elements eachof substantially Z-shape, one leg of each bracket element having the correlated ,d portion of the body yoke pivotally attached thereto by a common through-bolt inserted through alined apertures in the pivotally attached parts and the meeting angular opposite legs of said bracket elements being apertured and joined by a tightening tie element whereby the first mentioned body yoke supporting legs of the bracket elements are clampingly engaged with the opposite vertical edges of the blade element proper of the implement, and the top edge portion or" the arcuate attachment blade element is flanged outwardly and supportedly overlap cd on the top edge of the intermediate portion of said U shaped body yoke.

SHIRLEY RALPH CHRISTIANSEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,015,109 Hays Sept. 24, 1935 2,348,669 Winter May 9, 19 .4 

